ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Friday, February 21, 1997 TAG: 9702210038
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 1 EDITION: METRO
COLUMN: Friday Something
SOURCE: NANCY GLEINER
Ever gotten a chilly reception when you stayed at a hotel? That's normal at the Ice Hotel in the Arctic village of Jukkasjarvi, Sweden.
Every inch of the hotel - except for the sauna, obviously - is carved out of ice and snow - about 3,000 tons of it! Hand-carved ice sculptures decorate the walls (polar bears are a favorite motif) and the 45-foot-long Absolute Bar, ice chapel, cinema and art gallery are made entirely of frozen water.
When you're ready to enter the land of nod, you can slumber on ice cube beds covered with reindeer skins. (Sub-zero sleeping bags are also provided.)
Poor Rudolph: Reindeer meat is a specialty in the restaurant. Wonder if they serve Bud Ice or iced tea?
Most guests stay only one night - surprise, surprise. Rooms start at $85 and slide up to $200 for the bridal suite, the perfect place to get the cold shoulder.
If you can't stand the lack of heat, get out of the kitchen and into a toasty log cabin adjacent to the hotel.
Nothing time-worn here, the hotel is remodeled every year, built from scratch, because in April it starts to melt!
LENGTH: Short : 31 linesby CNB